


Do you like stars?

by caffeinefire



Series: Ineffable Responses to an Ineffable Event (2019) [2]
Category: Good Omens (TV), Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
Genre: Blood, Crowley Created the Stars (Good Omens), Crowley is Good With Kids (Good Omens), Day Two Prompt: Look up to the sky and see..., Established Relationship, Fluff, Ineffable Event, Ineffable Event 2019, Ineffable Husbands (Good Omens), M/M, Other, Post-Apocalypse, but just like an itty bitty bit its barely mentioned, didn't want to catch anyone off guard though, kind of they're trying lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-22
Updated: 2019-10-22
Packaged: 2020-12-28 16:16:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21139553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caffeinefire/pseuds/caffeinefire
Summary: “Alright,” Crowley turned to Aziraphale, determinedly ignoring the angel’s soft smile. “Take the kid, I’ll go find the parents.”Crowley made no move to offer the child.“Crowley, you cannot be serious,” Aziraphale's smile dropped into an expert frown of disapproval. “There is a reason you were the nanny, my dear. Just… watch the boy for a moment, and I will go locate the parents.” He began to walk away before Crowley could sputter out a protest.





	Do you like stars?

It started as a lovely day for a midmorning picnic. The perfect day, in fact. The sky was bright and clear, and the brilliant blue of the sky turned paler as the sun climbed and midmorning slipped quickly into afternoon. If you’d asked Aziraphale and Crowley, though, they would have been shocked that any time had passed at all.

They lounged under the shade of a maple and on top of the softest tartan blanket Aziraphale could find, enjoying champagne, whatever food Aziraphale happened to want to pull out of the basket, and each other’s company. Such a perfect day had drawn couples and families alike to the park, and while no one interrupted them, certain, _smaller, _enjoyers of the day had no qualms about doing so at the volume they pleased.

“They’re so tiny, how do they always manage to be the loudest things around?” Crowley complained lightly, watching the children across the sidewalk fight over a broken rule in their game.

“I was under the distinct impression that you _liked _children,” Aziraphale reached for the bottle of champagne, food set aside for the moment.

“Me? Nah, ‘course not,” Crowley protested, looking nonchalantly away from Aziraphale, off at some unknown fascination in the distance. “They’re little…” he wiggled his fingers toward them, “Little cute things. Demons don’t like cute things. And they’re nuisances. Always complaining about something.”

“Right,” Aziraphale smirked into his champagne, trying to cover it up with a drink. “Of course, dear.” Crowley rolled his head over to set Aziraphale with a withering look, daring him to say anything else.

Aziraphale matched his glare.

“I just thought that perhaps you’d have something in common with them. What with the complaining, and being an adorable nuisance, and all,” Aziraphale tried to hide the color in his cheeks with a sip of wine, but he needn’t have worried. Crowley was already coloring to match the sunset red of the tree above them and was in no condition to notice Aziraphale’s stoic blush.

“I- You- _adora-,” _his voice pitched high on the last word, and he cut himself off. “_Aziraphale, _you can’t just-,”

“And why not?” It wasn’t the first time one of them had said something of that nature, but it was all still very new, and Crowley in particular was finding himself having to adjust to being on the receiving end.

“I-ngk,” Crowley finished, grumbling as he picked up a small sandwich, if only to have something to shove in his mouth.

Eventually, afternoon slipped into evening, and the sky dimmed so that on the eastern horizon, where the darkness crept up first, starlight began to push its way through the firmament, leaving a band of gentle glitter across the horizon. Soon Aziraphale would ask him what he was in the mood for next, and Crowley was considering his options when an ear-shattering wail broke the silence of the evening.

They both started, but Aziraphale was the first on his feet, glancing around to pinpoint the source of the screeching. It wasn’t hard. Most of the park had emptied out, and the only conceivable source could be a small figure a little ways down the path, wandering slowly toward them. Aziraphale took off toward the child, and Crowley was on his heels, picnic supplies forgotten.

“Are you alright?” Aziraphale asked when they reached him, voice raised just slightly to be heard over the wailing. The boy couldn’t have been more than four years old and was in a miserable state. His clothes were filthy, his head was tangled into more leaves than hair, and tear tracks ran freely down his face. Aziraphale fretted, his hands fidgeting in front of him.

“Can you tell us what’s happened?” Aziraphale asked, eyes wide with concern. The boy paused, hiccupped, then cried harder, throwing his head back with the force of the wail. “Oh dear…” He looked over to Crowley who was already staring at Aziraphale, unimpressed.

“Well why don’t _you _give it a try then,” he motioned to the crying child.

Crowley rolled his eyes and sighed; he made sure his glasses were pushed firmly against his face, then dropped slowly to one knee in front of the boy. He just stared at him for a moment, waiting for a lull. When he paused for a breath, Crowley interrupted him softly.

“Hey.”

The quiet word surprised him and he stopped crying to stare, still breathing unevenly, as if each new breath could start another round of sobbing.

“You lose your mom or dad?”

The boy nodded.

“You know where you saw them last?”

He shook his head, then gulped another breath, a sob working its way out.

“Hey, hey its alright, kid, we’ll find them,” Crowley interrupted before he could get going again. “What’s your name?” The child just stared, still on the brink of crying again. “That’s alright, just take some deep breaths. I’m Anthony. Can you say Anthony?”

“…An- Anthony,” the kid gasped out.

“Very good,” Crowley smiled at him. The kid began to point a finger in the direction he’d been walking from.

“We- we were all playing hide- hide-and-seek. And they never found m- me. And now its d-dark. And- And-,” in a rush of motion, the child flung himself at Crowley, wrapping himself around the demon and starting to cry in earnest again. Crowley’s eyes went wide behind his glasses, but his arms automatically wrapped around the boy to comfort him. After a moment, it became clear the boy wasn’t going to speak anymore, but his cries were muffled by Crowley’s coat, so he stood, pulling the child up with him into his arms.

“Alright,” Crowley turned to Aziraphale, determinedly ignoring the angel’s soft smile. “Take the kid, I’ll go find the parents.”

Crowley made no move to offer the child.

“Crowley, you _cannot _be serious,” Aziraphale's smile dropped into an expert frown of disapproval. “There is a reason you were the nanny, my dear. Just… watch the boy for a moment, and _I _will go locate the parents.” He began to walk away before Crowley could sputter out a protest.

“Angel, _don’t- _That was _for work-,” _

Aziraphale didn’t acknowledge him. Crowley sighed and resigned himself to picking leaves out of the boy’s hair.

“How d’you even find so many leaves anyway?” he asked more to himself than of the boy. “Get attacked by a tree or something?”

“mmph,” the boy said into his coat, and Crowley realized he’d stopped crying. He leaned back, pulling the child’s face away from him slightly.

“What was that now?”

“Said I fell,” he whispered.

“You-,” Crowley looked so exaggeratedly confused, the boy giggled a little. “_You fell out of a tree? _What were you doing in a tree?”

“Hide-,”

“Hide-and-seek, right,” Crowley shook his head. “Well no wonder they didn’t find you, trees are expert-level hiding places. You should join a league. Go professional.” The boy giggled more, then quickly frowned again, tears welling up in his eyes.

“Hey, don’t worry,” Crowley returned to picking leaves from his hair, gently trying to work out some of the tangles while he was at it. “My friend’s good at finding people, we’ll have you home soon enough.”

The boy only shook his head, tears starting to fall again, quietly this time.

“’s my knee. Hurt it when I fell,” he whispered, and Crowley froze mid-leaf.

“Do you like stars?” he asked out of nowhere, but the boy was happy to latch on to the change of topic, nodding his head and smiling again. The sun had set lower now, and most of the sky had been taken over by the patterns of light. Technically, the light pollution in London should have been enough that, even on a night like tonight, when the sky was clear and the air was clean, only the brightest stars could be seen.

But Crowley could always see the stars. Could find every wisp of starlight streaming its way through the firmament, the colors of the nebulas and brilliant shine of far-off suns clear to him even on the cloudiest of days. And tonight, the boy could see them too.

“You see that one?” Crowley pointed into the sky, and the boy followed his finger with wide eyes. “That one’s called Alpha Centauri. It’s actually two stars, isn’t that cool?” Crowley continued pointing out stars while he assessed the boy’s leg. He kicked himself for not having noticed it before, but the pants had been so ripped up, and his clothes were so dirty anyway from hiding in (and falling from) a tree, that it camouflaged most of the damage.

It had been skinned pretty badly, the wound full of all sorts of dirt and leaf-bits, but he doubted there was any injury to the bone or muscle. Still, it was a lot of blood on a toddler.

By the time Crowley was finished, he could hear a familiar, rambling, half-conversation in the distance, and when the boy looked back down from the sky, his leg was healthy, and he could see a figure running toward him from down the path. A second one stayed behind, choosing to walk at a more relaxed pace, and both the child and Crowley broke out into large grins.

“Keep up with that hide-and-seek, kid, you’ve got real talent,” Crowley knelt and set the boy on his own two feet. He expected the kid to run off immediately, but he hesitated.

“My name’s Jacob,” he smiled. “And your friend? I don’t think he’s your friend.”

Crowley’s brow furrowed.

“What makes you say that?”

“You called him angel, an’ he called you dear. My mommy and daddy call each other that a lot,” the boy grinned wider as Crowley grew red and his eyes widened. Before he could find the words to respond, Jacob turned and ran down the path, where his mother scooped him up.

Crowley stood suddenly and readjusted his glasses as Aziraphale approached.

“I found them combing the wrong side of the park, not hard to pick them out with how worried they were. How did your end go?” Aziraphale struggled to keep his satisfied smile from becoming a smirk when he heard a shout from not too far down the path.

“Bye Mr. Anthony!”

“Fine,” Crowley shrugged nonchalantly, pretending not to notice. “Went fine.”

“Thanks for the stars!” Jacob’s mother had turned and was beginning to carry him back to the rest of the family, obviously used to this sort of departure.

Aziraphale raised an eyebrow. “Just fine?”

“And my leg!” The voice was getting more distant now.

“Yep,” Crowley turned and started walking down the path.

“Oh! And I like your eyes!” The shouts were barely audible, but the words were still clear.

“That kid has a hell of a voice,” Crowley muttered. Aziraphale was grinning widely now.

“You should show him your eyes! He’ll think they’re cool!”

“He’s right, you know. I do rather like your eyes.”

“_Angel-,”_

**Author's Note:**

> I'm @caffeinefire on tumblr! This is in response to prompts from @ineffable-event on tumblr!


End file.
